tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13836234175970991022011-11-19T15:19:19.542+11:00Whatever comes to mind at the timebehappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.comBlogger781100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-53846052193817875792011-02-20T00:37:00.002+11:002011-02-20T01:39:55.731+11:00

I first found out about this when one of my colleagues at work emailed this article around. He wanted to know whether this will have any impact on our work, which relies heavily on the way Google shows its search results. If Google starts to show different search results for everyone then it would be impossible to guarantee any kind of rankings for a particular site. In fact the whole concept of

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-78178878572249858222011-02-13T22:26:00.001+11:002011-02-13T22:27:36.599+11:00

I'm deciding to start blogging again. Sometimes the Facebook status update just isn't long enough for me to put down my thoughts.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-68188346773080492282009-05-26T13:30:00.002+10:002009-05-26T13:33:40.088+10:00

This probably falls under the Rants category… Why do everyone write “loose” when they really mean “lose”? It seems like only people who write for a living (authors, newspaper/magazine editors, etc.) know about the word “lose”. I can’t even recall the last time I saw someone using “lose” correctly in a comment. Probably never. Argh! Here are some definitions from Dictionary.com: loose –

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-85703372934527056462009-04-29T23:23:00.001+10:002009-04-29T23:23:56.120+10:00

You can cry when you are sad. You can cry when you are happy. But when you are hit with both at the same time Crying becomes confusing. Your emotions are being pulled in two opposite directions. Yet they arrive at the same result – tears. Maybe it’s easier to treat them as one combined feeling No! Just ignore their meanings the events that gave rise to the feelings And let

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-5265522202287208432009-03-20T15:06:00.002+11:002009-03-20T15:25:59.799+11:00

Today I am picking up dad from the airport, so I checked Google Map for the route. (I already knew how to get there; just wanted to confirm the little details.) Here is what they showed me:Highlights of the (proposed) journey Step 42: 5404 km Step 103: 6243 km Step 119: 4436 km Looks like dad will have to wait at the airport for some time… PS: Apparently our airport is called

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-7014923288868660352009-03-14T17:52:00.001+11:002009-03-14T17:52:00.136+11:00

Walled in on all sides The only way out is up I tried to climb the rough walls But every time I slipped Or lost my balance Or my arms got tired Or my fingers lost their grips from pain And I gave up Then I thought about the man Who saved us all Betrayal Humiliation Pain Death He endured it all I must follow his way Ignore the aching muscles Ignore the sore

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-25689213126787724252009-03-13T14:16:00.001+11:002009-03-13T14:16:43.693+11:00

Today I borrowed War and Peace from the library. I don’t know if I can get through all 1359 pages of it before it’s due in three weeks time, but the one-week trip to Sydney should give me more free time to read. That’s my way of challenging myself.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-62518205896857353142009-02-09T15:37:00.002+11:002009-02-09T15:43:48.078+11:00

It seems that for Australians, 40-plus degree days are the new 30-pluses. And what better way to escape the heat than throwing myself into cool sea water?The beach itself is very hot. The sand can literally burn your feet. The occasional hot breeze is a hair dryer pointed at my face. The beach is one giant oven.The sea is another story altogether. It remains at a cool 20-something. Waves rushs

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-78537326771016064552009-02-02T10:00:00.002+11:002009-02-02T10:00:39.802+11:00

I feel stupid sometimes. Why do I have to do things the hard way? By taking the difficult route, I end up taking on more risks. I'm supposed to be a risk-averse person!It wouldn't have been a problem if this is about some RPG video games. You can always start over the game so risk-taking is almost preferred. No, this isn't a game. My future, my career, my life. They are not a game. I take

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-35981241435975333862009-01-23T16:01:00.002+11:002009-01-23T16:14:25.818+11:00

Technology is Great, but Are We Forgetting to Live?This article validated what I have been doing unconsciously all these years. On any given trip there was a feeling that I could have taken more pictures. I almost felt guilty for allowing the "big moments" of my life slip by without recording them for future reference. Well, turns out I had done the best thing with these "moments" -- I lived

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-21653946919031759552009-01-07T16:51:00.003+11:002009-01-07T17:16:48.974+11:00

Today I dug up an old CD, I Don't Want To Miss A Thing by Aerosmith. The case it came in was previously stuck and wouldn't open, but today I managed to fix it. Having taken the CD out of the case I decided to give it a play on my laptop.So I fired up Windows Media Player 11 and out of curiosity tried to retrieve the album info online. Usually I can't get the album info because I mostly own

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-67004371780908957022008-12-28T03:16:00.003+11:002008-12-28T03:23:21.720+11:00

Just read this from a newspaper column:Taking screen shots from a Mac is dead easy: three, and sometimes four, taps on the keyboard and you have the image captured forever...[p]ressing cmd-shift-3 takes a snapshot of the screen.- Page 43 of Livewire, The Age, 23-10-2008Have they never heard of the print-screen key on a PC keyboard?

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-2088897717856647112008-12-10T15:18:00.002+11:002008-12-10T15:24:08.590+11:00

CCTV cameras which can 'predict' if a crime is about to take place are being introduced on Britain's streets.The cameras can alert operators to suspicious behaviour, such as loitering and unusually slow walking. Anyone spotted could then have to explain their behaviour to a police officer. Source: MailOnlineFirstly I would like to know accurate these cameras are. If it gives out false alarms half

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-23382866079713716792008-11-23T03:30:00.003+11:002008-11-23T03:39:03.853+11:00

Today a couple from a nearby Christian church knocked on my door. They went through a brief introduction about themselves and their church. After that they did something very special. They asked if there was anything they could pray for me. Naturally I told them my exam in four days, thinking the "prayer" would be performed when they returned to church. Instead they began praying right there,

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-25233670233080688352008-10-08T04:50:00.002+11:002008-10-08T05:06:06.844+11:00

Half a week ago I was working on my final year project report, when my laptop suddenly began to behave strangely and randomly shutting down. A day later I found the problem: the CPU appeared to have died, causing the laptop to prevent overheating by shutting itself down. All my data, which resides in the harddisk, fortunately remained intact. It did gave me a good scare.A few hours ago, I was

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-92122820325451835892008-09-29T01:15:00.001+10:002008-09-29T01:15:08.895+10:00

Movie ReviewsNot entirely sure how accurate it is, but seems like a fun thing to try out on your blog. See if you can score a "genius" level.Blogged with the Flock Browser

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-10466271608642483042008-09-24T21:51:00.002+10:002008-09-24T21:53:10.289+10:00

A few years ago many of my friends kept their own blogs. Most wrote about their lives, essentially keeping an electronic diary, while a few had thoughtful, analytical essays on topics of their choosing. I, too, was swept up by the trend and posted first on Xanga and now here.For the last two or three years, quite a few of these blogs were abandoned. Now, I might see one or two updates every month

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-61890462508689562522008-06-13T14:33:00.002+10:002008-06-13T14:45:30.198+10:00

=: Late Fees And Charges Still Apply :=My Aunt died in January. CitiBank billed her for February and Marchfor their monthly service charge on her credit card, and then addedlate fees and interest on the monthly charge... the balance had been$0.00 and now is $60.00.I placed the following phone call to CitiBank:Me: "I am calling to tell you that my aunt died in January."CitiBank: "The account was

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-64296212204888916332008-06-04T13:48:00.000+10:002008-06-04T13:49:02.974+10:00

Today I was doing some research on Facebook as part of my work, when I hit upon an interesting feature. Actually it's just the friends search function. The interesting part comes from Facebook trying to show you people you are more likely to know, and it does that by looking at the number of mutual friends between the two of you. What's really cool is Facebook will show you these mutual

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-27303876370862337472008-01-09T01:26:00.000+11:002008-01-09T02:34:14.083+11:00

Before my Costa Rican volunteering trip, I was rather nervous. Not because I was going to a foreign place whose people speak in a language I didn't understand, nor was I worried about the security of the country. ISV assigned to me a community project, meaning I would be working closely with the locals. Being an introvert there was some concern that I would find it hard to fit into the culture.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-11451125861182774672007-11-13T11:44:00.000+11:002007-11-13T12:23:54.952+11:00

A Gotcha Call is the name adopted by radio station FOX for a prank call. Usually a prank call is initiated by the prankster, however if an annoying person calls you up an opportunity exists to play a little prank on them. I term this a reverse gotcha call.It is not difficult to guess which type of callers are most likely to fall prey to a reverse gotcha call -- the telemarketing people, of course

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-31142625007808617882007-10-30T22:38:00.000+11:002007-10-30T23:42:17.906+11:00

There was a time when I considered countries like the U.S. and the U.K. as "free" countries. Countries such as China used to scare me because the government was so powerful that the slightest hint of dissent will result in your imprisonment. Back then I was lucky enough to believe in a black and white world, where the Western countries were the good guys whereas dictatorships such as the Chinese

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-31452239908243087952007-10-21T22:34:00.000+10:002007-10-21T23:14:22.203+10:00

I used to think no matter what I do there is no meaning to it. I could make a lot of money and buy a lot of stuff but sooner or later I will die and can't enjoy them anymore.I could help other people by directly giving them assistance or through money donations. However these people will eventually pass away, no matter how much help I provide.I could invent something, either a physical object or

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-74772766969411534932007-10-13T08:33:00.000+10:002007-10-13T08:42:56.673+10:00

Source: Indexed/original postNo wonder I don't learn much from lectures. :P

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-91771418482386644812007-10-05T17:44:00.000+10:002007-10-05T19:31:32.693+10:00

Every time a salesman calls I tell myself the best thing to do is to keep the conversation short, that I should cut them off and tell them I'm not interested. However, as more marketing firms outsource their staff to India, I can't resist giving them a chance to pitch their sales so I can challenge them back. This time is no different.The call started with the presumably junior staff pitching

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-22738637768085945272007-09-18T18:01:00.000+10:002007-09-18T18:52:29.266+10:00

Every time we get it idiot-proofed, Ma Nature produces cleverer idiots.- Robin KinkeadLast weekend I attended Manifest, an event for otaku. My sister and I went to see the cosplaying competition, where participants dressed as their favourite anime/computer game characters. The organisers were thoughtful enough to include a picture of the character being cosplayed, and not surprisingly this was

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-36933731703997706312007-08-30T23:00:00.000+10:002007-08-30T23:49:43.501+10:00

I've been playing with calendar software/services. It started with a nifty application called Rainlendar, which allowed me to enter my friend's birthdays as well as any pending tasks. Some time later Google launched its calendar service and I moved my schedules onto their server. Although Microsoft's MSN (or Live or whatever you want to call it) and Yahoo also have calendars built into their

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-53056051310991515212007-08-25T02:34:00.000+10:002007-08-25T03:28:25.877+10:00

I find it ironic that people in Britain should complain about racist comments being thrown around in Big Brother. The reality is that there are many racist people in our society and BB (Big Brother), being a reality show, inherited the vice.I am confused as to whether the complainers are denying the existence of racism in their country, or are they angry at BB revealing too much reality? The

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-47679564030369481762007-08-18T21:45:00.000+10:002007-08-18T22:27:17.606+10:00

I'm not going to discuss why I will not buy an iPhone even when it becomes available in Australia. Maybe I will talk about that -- and other Apple products -- in another post. What I want to talk about now is a strange idea.Through heavy marketing, Apple has got everyone to associate touch screen phone with iPhone. It is not the first touch screen phone, but it may be the most usable (I don't

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-31898605356697306152007-08-07T19:06:00.000+10:002007-08-07T19:41:19.094+10:00

Yesterday I had my investment tute. There was a question that required us to work out the number of coupons paid by a bond. The coupons are paid every March 15 and September 15, and the bond goes from July 2007 to March 2019. So the first coupon pays on 15 September 2007 and then the 15th of every March and September until March 15, the last coupon. Clearly there should be 24 coupon dates.The guy

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-71956175670487002812007-07-27T20:59:00.000+10:002007-07-27T21:35:16.907+10:00

MSN Messenger (you will likely be using Windows Live Messenger, but I don't have XP and can't upgrade to it) lets you set your online status to inform friends whether you are at the computer or not. And I seem to be the only person who believe the status really reflects the person's online status.I only set my status to "away" or "busy" if I cannot or do not want to reply to an incoming message.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-68168148003962510102007-07-27T19:47:00.000+10:002007-07-29T00:09:20.810+10:00

My time is filling up. Apart from eating, sleeping and other "housekeeping" activities, there are uni classes, homework, revision and work. Upon completing these tasks I can move onto more leisurely activities. The problem is, by that stage I am usually left with insufficient time to do all the fun things I planned to do.Let's use TV as an example. There are many TV shows I like watching.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-13093965545428400192007-07-17T00:16:00.000+10:002007-07-17T01:10:54.505+10:00

My sister's boyfriend had recently acquired a Nintendo Wii, so I finally had a chance to try out the motion-sensing controller and sampling some of the games.I'm quite impressed with the controllers. They are more accurate than I would have thought possible, and even knows the way you are holding the controller when you are not waving it around. The games are okay: the five WiiSports games that

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-88167850968187142342007-07-12T17:38:00.000+10:002007-07-12T17:40:29.238+10:00

http://www.willitblend.com/videos.aspx?type=unsafe&video=iphoneNow you have seen all the iPhone related video...

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-2880363250195843122007-07-09T19:07:00.000+10:002007-07-09T20:01:00.748+10:00

I have just read a news article about the fitness requirements of a Formula-one driver. Due to high accelerations during the races, drivers experience high G-force, which creates stress to their bodies. Below is the article's description of the stress to a driver's neck."Head plus helmet weighs 6kg. With added G-forces when cornering, the neck has to support up to 30 kg."-The Age, 17-03-2007The

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-92138282648533444782007-07-07T01:54:00.000+10:002007-07-07T02:29:49.077+10:00

One day in uni I saw a girl trying to promote some cause or club activity. She was approaching a guy walking by. The guy acted as if he was caught shoplifting, as he hastily made up an excuse, saying he was late for class, and promptly sped towards the student union building, which never held any classes. Now I am not trying to stereotype, but does that guy have to be an Asian, probably a Chinese

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-31408324504884400962007-07-01T00:51:00.000+10:002007-07-06T18:14:36.701+10:00

I have been ordering coffee without sugar for almost two month now. To tell the truth, coffee sans sugar can be quite hard on the taste buds. Sometimes they are rather bitter, other times they are simply tasteless. Initially I was reluctant to admit that, and preferred to think of it as part of the "transitional period", firmly believing my palate will eventually adjust to the new taste. It did,

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-79879725356224807102007-06-15T19:14:00.000+10:002007-06-15T20:02:11.211+10:00

Having just walked out of my first exam this semester, I decided to write my semi-annual exam bash/rant. The exam I just had is on microeconomics, which involves quite a bit of maths. For me, who also take courses in engineering, the maths are quite easy. In fact it is so easy I question the need to waste time on them in an exam.Take a simple example, solving a pair of simultaneous equations. We

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-40794855778225694862007-06-09T02:24:00.000+10:002007-06-09T03:34:25.828+10:00

The inspiration for this post started when I was considering why video games are not responsible for violent acts in real life. Clearly it is impossible to prove that video games will not make anyone more violent. Even I don't believe in that assertion. However it is my belief that video games are not the major influence of someone committing acts of violence, rather it is something more subtle

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-31605279960446038542007-06-06T15:29:00.000+10:002007-06-06T16:39:17.569+10:00

Everyone is talking about security these days. Politicians want to protect their countries from terrorist attacks, while companies are worried about frauds of all kinds. These concerns led them to introduce various security measures such as more stringent checks in airports, identifying a person by their biometrics, and looking at the buying patterns of a credit card. Although there is no doubt

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-56760693521733844762007-05-31T15:32:00.000+10:002007-06-03T23:04:43.761+10:00

Depending on how active you are online you may have anywhere between 1 to 50 logins (username and password pairs). It's just that every web site you go to requires a separate login. Sometimes you can reuse the details but not always. Your favourite username might be taken, or the password rules are incompatible with each other. Thus it's practically impossible to use the exact same login for

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-78429046808264051602007-05-15T00:53:00.000+10:002007-05-31T14:57:10.379+10:00

I have at least 7 email accounts and it's difficult and annoying to keep track of them all. The most obvious thing is I have to login 7 times to check everything, since I do not turn on "remember passwords". Anyway a while back I discovered Thunderbird (TB) can be made to handle many popular webmail accounts such Hotmail and Yahoo Mail, with the help of the Webmail extension. I have been using it

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-67938671280017063902007-05-14T15:54:00.000+10:002007-06-14T17:48:11.365+10:00

There was an old scene from E.R. that I still remember: some of the main characters were interviewing medical students wanting to work at the hospital. When asked why they wanted to become a doctor, every one of them invariably answered, "I want to help people." Needless to say, the interviewers were not impressed with their uncreative responses.Aside from the funny aspect, the scene stuck

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-6210071772343092162007-05-14T00:05:00.000+10:002007-05-14T00:26:18.676+10:00

Last Thursday and Friday were two of the worst days of my life. Unpleasant things happen all the time but seldom did so many bad events descend on me in just 48 hours. I thought I was going to give a description of the happenings in those two days but I think I'll spare you the extra reading and myself the extra typing because this is not the main theme of this entry. Just take it from me that it

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-72744746748366731092007-05-11T03:29:00.000+10:002007-05-11T03:33:20.010+10:00

Blair to leave office on June 27I hope I'm making my political stance very clear.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-57680242300035948912007-05-06T14:17:00.000+10:002007-05-06T14:35:19.070+10:00

Pandora has finally closed the hole in its check for U.S. users. Previously the "check" consisted of asking for the user's zip code, but now the service actually finds out the geographical location using the user's IP. Just as I suspected, the ban was put in place due to the recent increase of royalties paid by webcasters. For this reason I don't blame Pandora for turning its back on me.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-4813884655064415222007-05-02T01:09:00.000+10:002007-05-02T01:34:55.043+10:00

Obviously the war on Iraq is not going well. Even Bush and Howard have to admit that. However they are anything but ready to back down. Instead they want to send additional troops to the war-torn country, even though it is not clear whether that will help the situation. It would be unwise to lie to the public, such as telling them "the additional troops will ensure our victory in six months". If

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-9197067726479453622007-05-02T00:35:00.000+10:002007-05-02T01:07:36.461+10:00

I have discovered a class of regulations that does the opposite of what it is supposed to. Basically the lawmakers, with good intentions, creates a rule that cannot be enforced against those who are determined to break it. On the other hand, the rule inconveniences people who break the rule but not with malicious motives. Here is an example: banning photography in underground train stations. It

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-14578118208141651062007-05-01T22:43:00.000+10:002007-05-02T00:34:54.307+10:00

Last week I decided to walk a few blocks from the uni to try out Starbuck's coffee. Until then I had always bought my coffee at the uni. It turned out their smallest cup is "tall" which is bigger than a medium and certainly more expensive. "No problem," I thought, "a bigger cup costs more." Because the uni cafes always added the sugar for me, I just took my cappuccino and left. I don't really

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-85021579558386847682007-04-27T18:39:00.000+10:002007-04-27T19:25:42.915+10:00

I was reading a news article last night about the familiar violent-games-creates-violent-people debate. It was written in 2005 (don't ask why I still have the paper), so it wasn't influenced by the recent Virginia Tech shooting, instead it featured Grand Theft Auto (GTA) quite a bit since that was when the "Hot Coffee patch" incident occurred. One of the lines caught my eye. It quoted Hilary

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-46596846277000163212007-04-22T03:51:00.000+10:002007-04-22T04:44:36.409+10:00

I just discovered another murder-suicide incident, this time at NASA. Should we even be surprised that these shootings just keep happening?From what I read on a blog, it appears that most Americans don't believe these types of shooting are directly caused by the lack of gun control laws in the country, even though the rest of the world disagrees. Below I share with you two pro-gun comments on the

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-76775295093291216902007-04-22T02:11:00.000+10:002007-04-22T03:05:54.465+10:00

I suppose I will focus on TV censoring off obscene languages and gestures. I don't oppose censorship in general but the way it is done on TV just makes everything worse off. Let me explain. First of all, the shows that usually get censored are the so-called "reality shows". Now I don't know if the participates were told to swear their heads off or the producers just let nature runs its course,

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-77478136962132453352007-04-18T02:43:00.000+10:002007-04-18T03:29:43.534+10:00

The whole world today is talking about the Virgina Tech massacre. This news item is grossly overrated, because it is not the first of its kind, nor will it be the last. As long as the Americans hang on to their right to bear arms, these tragedies will continue to happen. I'm not necessarily saying the Second Amendment is wrong or bad, but merely laying out the options: give up free access to guns

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-45814509466738094352007-04-16T23:24:00.000+10:002007-05-14T00:04:32.402+10:00

There are people that we like, and there are some that we love. What's the difference? Isn't love just the superlative form of like? Furthermore, we often like one person more than another, meaning there are varying degrees of like. So when does like becomes love? Does the affection for someone build up gradually so that it crosses the region of like and enters the love territory, or is there a

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-7874557023186265082007-04-13T19:06:00.000+10:002007-04-13T19:09:02.310+10:00

There are a lot of crap on YouTube, but here is one worth watching. I had to re-watch the first half to understand everything, but when I did...I'll let you find out.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-29778127723268653072007-04-13T01:54:00.000+10:002007-04-13T19:05:51.171+10:00

I must apologise for playing a word game in the title, but my choice of social networking "site" would be a good old party. I am not a terribly sociable person and at times even find facing people a little daunting. Still, given a choice of online communication, phone and face-to-face meeting, I will pick the latter. It is hard to explain this is so; my guess is that the physical proximity forces

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-60356186386626797702007-04-06T21:25:00.000+10:002007-04-06T22:59:33.900+10:00

Let's say you are stranded on an island by yourself. There is plenty of food around so you're not in danger of starving to death, but there is absolutely no way to communicate with the outside world. How long do you think you can last before boredom or loneliness drives you crazy?If my livelihood is not in immediate danger, I dare say I can last quite a while before cracking. I have already

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-8245840616608476232007-03-30T19:36:00.000+10:002007-03-30T20:35:23.877+10:00

Just to clear up: "partial" here means "bias", as in not impartial.I am not a good musician, but I did received a few years of musical training, so I can tell if someone is singing out of tune. I also took a few English and Chinese lessons while in school, so I can distinguish profound, well thought out lyrics from crappy unimaginative ones. That is to say, given a modern popular song, I can more

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-4881639030457642882007-03-29T19:20:00.000+10:002007-03-29T20:27:20.665+10:00

It is almost incomprehensible that I, of all people, would accuse anyone of being shy or timid. If anything, I should be guilty of the crime, being one who seldom speaks up, and even then only in a small voice. However this is the situation in a particular engineering subject. It turns out that our lecturer enjoys asking questions frequently, which I think is a good idea as the interaction keeps

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-48087803779776326652007-03-25T00:37:00.000+11:002007-03-25T02:49:46.640+11:00

I think for the last few weeks, I had been time-shifting all TV shows. In other words, I "taped" them onto my computer and watched them later. The obvious reason is so that I can get on with more important things such as doing my homework, but another perhaps equally important reason is I might have built up a zero tolerance on TV ads. It is a well known fact that a programme that lasts an hour

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-10844450950873209182007-03-24T13:22:00.000+11:002007-03-24T13:23:00.669+11:00

In my last post I talked of remove the so-called "bloat" in my life. I am happy to report that I have made some further progress in that area. I have dropped Without A Trace from my list of must-watch TV shows. It's not that the show is not good, but compared to the other five or six programmes still on my list, this one is giving me diminishing returns (of utilities, for those economists out

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-29140334860100815122007-03-12T02:13:00.000+11:002007-03-12T02:17:24.603+11:00

Many months ago I blogged about clearing my Windows desktop. This has largely been done. Items that survived the cut are what I use on a daily basis. I have also stopped launching programs that served no functional purposes.In another previous post, I indicated an interest in applying the same principle to my life. This ambitious project has commenced and some progress has been made. One example

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-46420117471160478812007-03-06T00:44:00.000+11:002007-03-06T01:39:46.791+11:00

After a mere 22 odd years of living in cities, I am thoroughly tire of it. To me, an average day would involve working, eating, followed by some entertainment. This daily routine is so repetitive and uninteresting that I can no longer get any excitement out of it. While I will continue to work, eat and play in order to survive, I don't think I really care if I'm doing job A or job B, eating Pizza

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-34889416905343349692007-03-06T00:05:00.000+11:002007-03-06T00:43:47.491+11:00

This must sound crazy to a lot of people, but I am not really interested in making lots and lots of friends. It does not mean I want to have no friends, just not a lot of them that I would get calls from friends on a daily (or even weekly) basis, or have people that I would see every day. Curiously enough, often when I am by myself I feel liberating rather than lonely. This contrasts strongly

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-57972493219758001602007-02-27T23:34:00.000+11:002007-02-28T00:30:17.889+11:00

Yesterday I surrendered my 5-year-old phone and loaded the SIM card into a fairly modern phone. It's a Nokia 5300. It has a huge colour screen. It can play music and video files. It can take pictures. It made me seem like a big hypocrite.Obviously I will not be writing this post if I don't already have an explanation. So here we go...First of all I didn't buy this phone off the shelf. My sister's

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-89433074626638772122007-02-25T16:20:00.000+11:002007-02-25T17:05:01.022+11:00

After 31st March, travellers flying in and out of Australia can only carry limited amount of liquid/aerosol products onboard their flight. I had to research these regulations because mum will be leaving after March and she wonders about bringing alcohol back to HK, which tends to come in bottles of 750ml. According to the website, you can bring several containers of liquid, each not exceeding

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-89617190841228293752007-02-17T04:42:00.000+11:002007-02-17T05:19:43.933+11:00

While on the subject of TV, I cannot object more to the way TV stations deface the credit screen. Usually it is done by squashing the original picture to free up half the screen to show previews for upcoming programmes. This makes it impossible to read any of the credit text, and the voice over covers up the ending music. While viewers usually don't bother reading the credit roll, it is

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-41919838691152440352007-02-17T04:16:00.000+11:002007-02-17T04:40:57.820+11:00

Frankly the story behind the new 24 is pretty weak. If I really want to (I don't, but I can't resist it), I can probably find at least one flaw every 3 minutes. But the biggest problem lies in its depiction of the main characters, namely the good guys are all unbelievably stupid while the baddies are incredibly smart. For example, the president in the story makes George W. Bush look like Einstein

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-78359688965960023212007-01-31T02:44:00.000+11:002007-01-31T03:52:33.029+11:00

So Windows Vista had finally launched. There are news that indicates consumers are more interested about discounted gadgets (to promote Windows Vista) than the operating system itself. But that's okay, I am not writing tonight to bash Microsoft...well not directly. This evening I saw on TV this Apple ad making fun of Vista; I laughed my head off. While I searched for this ad online I also came

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-27683215165603893482007-01-30T01:58:00.000+11:002007-01-30T03:02:28.652+11:00

I have a funny habit of paying more attention to marketing pitches than I should. The pitch can be about anything: obtaining my vote for the student union, getting me to donate to a charity, even converting me to a Mormon. It doesn't matter what -- I just can't resist stopping and listening to what they have to say. Part of the reason maybe me feeling impolite to ignore even a stranger, but it

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-30685175580717035252007-01-26T04:21:00.000+11:002007-01-26T05:18:22.062+11:00

I have already established why I will not actively adopt the new OS and so wouldn't normally give any further reasons. However, what I have just found out can only be described as disturbing and thus deserves some mention. All of the following is based on Peter Guttman's A Cost Analysis of Windows Vista Content Protection. Guttman listed many problems created by Microsoft's efforts to protect "

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-43475702314017213062007-01-24T03:21:00.000+11:002007-01-24T04:31:16.963+11:00

I recently received an invitation to a concert in my email. The invitations were managed by the online service Evite. The system keeps track of who's going and who isn't. A closer look showed you can even elect to join a carpool. At that time I was undecided about my attendance so I held back from replying. And promptly forgot about the whole thing. When I checked my email again two days before

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-81676387264351228322007-01-20T18:27:00.000+11:002007-01-20T18:37:53.452+11:00

I have just watched The Ring 2, a sequel of the famous The Ring (the original Jap version). This means I have watched all three thrillers in the series, and believe me it was scary even watching in daylight. Anyway I couldn't help but had a silly thought. As you all know, the stories revolve around people mysteriously dying after watching a certain video tape, and the first movie came out in 1998

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-21302013125314874342007-01-18T01:27:00.000+11:002007-01-18T03:10:42.807+11:00

This is not an attempt to advocate illegal music downloads. As a matter of fact, I am going to discuss why you might be able to satisfy most or all of your music needs via free and legal means.Over the last two years or so, many music-related online services have cropped up, many of them free. It doesn't take a lot of imagination to infer such free services will have some kind of limitations in

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-27403050808761164542007-01-16T01:00:00.000+11:002007-01-16T02:11:10.085+11:00

I thought I had missed tonight's Late Show but a careful examination of the TV timetable showed it was supposed to run for three hours. What? The networks can never run such good shows excessively; if anything, Dave must usually give way to cricket or rugby, which consistently goes overtime. This has got to be a mistake. Indeed it was a mistake. Instead of the Late Show, I got some infomercial

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-51402982468477712472007-01-15T18:10:00.000+11:002007-01-15T19:24:27.398+11:00

All too often I hear people describe a particular technology as "once you try this you can't go back!" or "I can't live without it." Sometimes they say it as though I too will get hooked had I decide to "take the plunge". I can't disagree more.I believe that people can and should adapt to the situation, whether it is taking a turn for the better or worse. I remember one time in Melbourne a fire

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-74863104356616116162007-01-14T17:55:00.000+11:002007-01-14T18:32:57.412+11:00

For the past few semesters I had trouble concentrating on my uni work. Things were getting harder and I was doing more subjects than I should. Along the way I made a few attempts to manage my time efficiently. None of them worked really worked. There didn't seem to be enough time to finish assignments and still revise as much as I would like. At least that was what I told myself.Upon reflection,

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1383623417597099102.post-26203526796033042412007-01-13T05:30:00.000+11:002007-01-13T05:38:00.956+11:00

Just found out Blogger has fell out of beta and I could sign on with my Google account, so I decided to give this a try. I have been wanting to move out of Xanga for a while now because its layout is way too limiting and it has too much bloated crap that I never use. I am going to look into this further and decide whether to take the plunge and switch over.

behappy168http://www.blogger.com/profile/01099830368376646519noreply@blogger.com1